


Under the Surface

by TARDISTraveller42



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Swimming Pools, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, brief pstd
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-17
Updated: 2019-07-17
Packaged: 2020-06-29 21:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19839154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TARDISTraveller42/pseuds/TARDISTraveller42
Summary: Peter is eager to impress his new Avengers team. When he is invited to an Avengers only pool party, will he be up to the task? Or will this pool party be a complete failure? Only time will tell.





	Under the Surface

Under the Surface

Being invited to Tony Stark’s indoor pool party had to be one of the coolest things that had ever happened to Peter Parker. Here he was, just a kid bitten by a spider, and now he was going to chill out with Thor and the Hulk (though not in Hulk-form) and freaking Iron Man! 

Nobody at school would ever believe him, other than Ned. But who cares? This was an indoor barbeque pool party with the Avengers. 

Peter took an extra second in the lobby just to breathe it all in. His towel was flung over his shoulder casually, hiding the fact that his every nerve was buzzing. He probably didn’t look like an associate of Tony Stark as he stood in his board shorts and flip flops, but all of the suits walking around him seemed to have bigger worries on their minds. 

Peter was so caught up in looking up at the high ceiling and smiling to himself that he didn’t notice Happy approaching until he was two feet away.

“I called your name twice, kid; you can go in.”

“I can go in?” Peter repeated.

Happy took a deep breath.

“Through that door, down the steps, the second door on the left.” Happy leaned down closer. “Don’t go wandering off.”

“Got it. And...Mr. Stark is down there?”

Happy pinched the bridge of his nose.

“As head of security I can’t even answer that, but I think you can figure it out.”

Peter threw him an awkward thumbs-up and then dashed off to the door, eager to get to the party. The door locked right behind him with a loud clang, and suddenly Peter was alone. Alone in Stark Tower. On his way to hang out with the Avengers.

No big deal.

The hallways were all gray and metal, like some kind of fortress. Maybe this was a fortress? Protection against the bad guys Peter had grown up hearing about. 

The mere thought made him worried and excited at the same time. Maybe that was the world he was becoming a part of. A world bigger than high school and bullies and bicycle thieves.

A world where he could put his powers to some real use.

He shook his head to clear it. Stay focused, Parker. Find the pool, have a good time, maybe make a friend or two. Make Mr. Stark proud. 

Before he knew it, he was standing in front of the pool door. He felt small and silly now, with this great door looming in front of him. A deep breath. A shaky hand on the keypad.

And suddenly the door was sliding open for him.

The first thing Peter heard was Thor’s booming laughter as he splashed Rhodey, who was sitting poolside.

“Next time you try that, I’m gonna run upstairs and grab my suit,” Rhodey said playfully, shaking the water off of his arms. 

Thor dove back into the water, sending a wave crashing over Natasha as he went.

“Thor!” She shouted, though she was smiling. 

Thor came up for air a few feet away from her, grinning. 

Peter found himself smiling, too. The ceiling was made to look like the sky, with moving clouds and everything. It reminded him a bit of Harry Potter.

“Hot dog or hamburger?” A voice suddenly asked.

Peter turned to find Cap standing in front of a barbeque, wearing an apron and everything. For a second, he was lost for words. This was like a dream. A literal dream come true.

“Hamburger. With cheese, if you have it,” Peter replied.

“Wise choice,” Tony said from behind him.

Peter spun around. 

“Mr. Stark! Er, thank you. For inviting me. This is awesome.” He chuckled nervously, rubbing his goosebumped arm.

Admittedly, it was kind of strange seeing Mr. Stark wearing swim trunks and a T-shirt. He was so used to the typical image of him in either a jacket and tie or the Iron Man suit. There was a moment of awkwardness before Cap suddenly handed him a plate with a cheeseburger on it.

“Order up.”

“Thank you, Captain America.”

“Steve,” Cap said with a smile.

Peter found a seat beside the pool and set his things down. He bit into his burger to keep himself busy, because this was starting to feel like a scary adventure. Fighting in Germany had been one thing; he was good at fighting. But hanging out? Hoping to make a good impression? 

That was something he’d never been very good at.

“Pete,” Rhodey called. “I saw that your school is on its way to another decathlon championship.”

“Y-yeah, I think so,” Peter said in between bites. “MJ is a really good leader. So was Liz. They’re all really great.”

It was strange talking about his little high school achievements while he was sitting in a room with war heroes and people who had literally saved the world before. His decathlon just didn’t compete with the things they did. 

“Hello, spider,” Thor said with a wave.

“Hi Thor,” Peter said. His voice was getting smaller and smaller the more the Avengers talked to him. It made his cheeks burn. 

He was starting to freak out a little bit.

And then suddenly a hang clapped him on the back and Tony Stark was standing above him, through his billion dollar sunglasses. 

“Finish up so you can join us in the pool.”

Peter gave him a thumbs up and kept chewing, trying to get his breathing under control. Trying to make his heart slow down.

These were his friends. His coworkers. He knew he didn’t need to be anxious.

So why did he feel like he was failing at something? Why was his spidey sense going through the roof?

Peter took one final bite of his cheeseburger and stood on shaky legs. As he pulled off his T-shirt, he shut his eyes tightly. 

There was security. There were thick walls. There were people on the lookout. The Avengers were all gathered here, all ready to face any foe that dared to enter their sanctuary.cHe could relax.

And yet, the spider sense didn’t waver. It buzzed through him, like something was on its way. Something bad and scary. 

“Pete, are you joining us?” Tony called from the pool.

“Coming!” Peter shouted, trying to ignore the fact that his voice cracked as he said it.

His shirt discarded and his towel set out on the chair, Peter jumped into the deep end of the pool. A few of the guys cheered him on as he resurfaced. Thor even clapped him on the back, which almost left a bruise.

“Don’t let these guys intimidate you,” Nat said with a roll of the eyes. 

Peter nodded, letting himself smile. He had friends in the Avengers. Mr. Stark had invited him to his party.

And it was finally starting to feel right. Even if that spidey sense still lingered under his skin.

“We were starting to think you couldn’t swim,” Tony said, joining him by the edge of the pool.

“May taught me. Queens community pool every Saturday.”

Tony opened his mouth to respond, but thought better of it. He nodded, and then turned back to Thor and Bruce, who were splashing each other furiously.

“Should we play a round of chicken?”

“There’s an odd number of us,” Nat said.

“Rhodey!” Tony shouted. “Come join us!”

“I like to relax on my days off,” Rhodey said, turning a page in his book. “Go ask Captain Barbeque over there.”

Tony sent a splash of water up toward Rhodey, drenching his head and book in water. Rhodey blinked quietly for a minute, and then a grin spread across his face.

“Okay, just for that…Peter, can you lift me? I wanna throw his ass into the water.”

“Yes, er, Mr. Rhodes. I’ve got super strength.”

Rhodey set his book down, dove into the water, and was next to Peter within a few seconds. Buzzing with excitement, Peter went underwater and then rose again with Rhodey on his shoulders. Around them, Tony jumped onto Thor’s back and Bruce picked up Nat.

“All against all?” Tony said, tossing his glasses onto the tile beside the pool.

“Sure. But I’m only gunning for you,” Rhodey replied.

“I think we’re gonna win this round,” Nat said to Bruce.

“I think you’re right.”

“Go!” Rhodey shouted.

Peter approached Thor, keeping hold of Rhodey so he didn’t slip off. He was laughing the entire time, as Rhodey and Tony faced off above him, grabbing each other’s arms to try to shove each other down.

To their left, Bruce took a step forward and his foot slipped, sending Nat flying into the water. Peter gasped, and then starting laughing again as they both came to the surface and started squabbling among themselves.

Above, Rhodey was gaining the upper hand. Tony was tilted on Thor’s shoulders, hanging onto Rhodey’s arms for dear life.

“Long live the king,” Rhodey said dramatically, and then threw Tony’s off of his arms with a flourish.

Both Tony and Thor crashed into the water with a big splash, and then came back up spitting water out of their mouths. When he regained his breath, Tony looked up to find Rhodey holding his arms up in triumph.

“One more round, and I call the kid.”

“Fine,” Rhodey shrugged, jumping off Peter’s shoulders.

As Rhodey settled onto Bruce’s shoulders and Thor set Nat on his own, Peter approached Tony.

“Okay, kid, time to prove yourself.”

Tony was obviously joking, but Peter honestly felt that it was. This was the time when he would really become a member of their group, not just in name but in spirit, or he didn’t. Now was the time.

He easily set Tony on his shoulders, then started walking toward Bruce. They could win this round, he was sure of it. Rhodey was already starting to slip off of Bruce’s shoulders. 

“Hello Dr. Banner, I don’t think we’ve met,” Peter said casually.

“Nice try, kid. I know what a diversion looks like.”

Peter smiled softly.

“You caught me.”

“Are you guys seriously just going to ignore me again?” Nat said bitterly.

“This is between Rhodey and me,” Tony said. “But I’ll gladly beat both of you if you want me to.”

Nat outright laughed.

“Do you remember what I did to your ‘head of security’ when we first met?” Nat spat back.

“You mean when you’re name was Natalie and you were a secretary?”

“I am so confused,” Peter said honestly.

“You don’t wanna know,” Rhodey explained.

Tony and Rhodey went at it again, grabbing each other by the arms and trying to shove each other off. Only this time, Tony had the upper hand. Peter stood his ground, planting his feet so he wouldn't slip. In front of him, Bruce was struggling to hold onto Rhodey as he started slipping off of his shoulders.

It looked like Tony was about to win.

And then suddenly all four of them were falling into the water.

Peter resurfaced to find Nat raising her hands in triumph, still sitting on Thor’s shoulders. 

“How did you do that?” He asked, almost in awe.

“Keep ‘em distracted, then take them all down at once,” she said simply.

“Nope,” Cap said from the poolside. “Foul play. That doesn’t count. I saw you and Thor separate.”

“Steve, who’s team are you on?” Nat asked playfully.

“Don’t start that again,” Tony said, rolling his eyes.

Steve’s jaw dropped, and then suddenly he was tossing his apron to the side.

“You’ve got two against you now, Tony,” he said jokingly, jumping into the water.

Together, he and Rhodey swam toward Tony and the three of them started a splashing war. Peter, Nat, Bruce, and Thor joined together on the other side of the pool, laughing at the others’ antics. 

That is, until Thor splashed Bruce, who splashed Nat, who splashed Peter. Then all hell broke loose.

Waves crashed, water flew, and all seven of the pool occupants were engaged in an ultimate game, the goal of which was a mystery. Laughter took over the space. Splashes turned into dunkings, especially Thor, whom turned out to love sending Peter’s head under the water. Nat watched with humor, as she and Bruce struggled to dunk Thor’s head under the water. 

When Peter was finally freed, he caught his breath and joined the others’ laughter, feeling more free than he had in a long, long time. Here, he didn’t have to be spiderman. He could be a kid, hanging out with some cool friends.

He swam over to Tony, whose back was turned, and splashed him from behind. With Rhodey swimming over to join Thor and the rest of them, Tony had no protection from Peter’s assault, which he took with a whoop of laughter.

Peter splashed his mentor again, before taking a splashing of his own to the face. Then Tony went under the surface and came up grabbing Peter’s legs. With a shout, Peter was thrown two feet away, crashing back into the pool and rolling through the water.

When he came back to the surface, he wiped his face and regained his breath, finding Tony again easily. He swam over beneath the surface so as to sneak up, and then arose right in front of Tony.

“Woah, kid!” Tony shouted with a smile.

Peter chuckled again, and then grabbed his mentor’s shoulders and dunked him under the water. When Tony resurfaced, Peter laughed at his flattened hair, and then dunked him again.

That was when Peter’s spidey senses came to a head. 

When Tony came back to the surface, he was breathing quickly; more quickly than his short jaunt under the water warranted. His eyes were wide and unfocused, searching for something beyond the pool and his friends. 

He looked afraid. No, more than afraid; terrified. He wasn’t a man looking for playful revenge for a teenage pool antic; he was a man scared for his life.

“Mr. Stark?” Peter said quietly, frozen where he was five feet away. The others hadn’t noticed yet. They were still shouting and laughing and playing.

“I’ll tell you; I’ll tell you,” Tony shouted, his voice hoarse. 

Peter felt his heart constrict. He didn’t know much about Tony’s past, beside what he’d read in the news. But he knew there was a lot that his mentor hid from everyone. He knew there were things he didn’t talk about. 

And he was sure that he had just set off something bigger than he knew how to deal with.

“Mr. Stark? I-it’s okay. It’s just me.”

“Tones?” Rhodey asked, suddenly aware that something was wrong. “Pete, what happened?”

Rhodey touched a hand to Tony’s back and he literally jumped, shoving Rhodey away from himself.

“Woah, Tony; it’s alright. It’s just me.”

Rhody searched around and met eyes with the others, who seemed to understand everything better than Peter did. They all huddled together, speaking quietly, while Peter stood back and watched Tony with tears in his eyes.

It was a mistake. He didn’t know. How could he have known?

But he still blamed himself entirely. He blamed himself for the lost look in Tony’s eyes, and the fearful jerking of his limbs whenever anyone touched him. He blamed himself for the worried glances the others were sharing, and the way they had to coax Tony to the side of the pool and help him out of the water.

As Tony lay regaining his breath on the cold tile of the floor, Peter blamed himself for everything and more. He shouldn’t have come here. He shouldn’t have intruded on the Avengers’ party. He should have stayed home with May, a friendly neighborhood spiderman. 

He should go home. He should go home. He should already be at home. 

“Peter, come here,” Rhodey said. He didn’t sound angry, just scared. Peter cursed himself anyway. He had put that fear there. He had made a war hero afraid. He had given the world’s favorite superhero a panic attack. 

And he had totally ruined the pool party.

“Peter,” Natasha said next, her voice soft. 

Peter obeyed them, as reluctant as he was. If he was going to be stripped of his Avengers status, he might as well get it over with. 

Dripping with pool water and feeling like a guilty criminal, Peter padded toward the horrible scene in front of him. His dream had turned into a nightmare; his heroes appearing more human than ever. 

Tony still lay on his back getting his breath back while Rhodey held his hand in a tight grasp. Cap was getting a cup of water and Nat was racing out to get Happy. Bruce was speaking quietly to Tony, telling him to look into his eyes and everything. 

Thor was the only one who looked as lost as Peter.

“Peter,” Bruce said, whipping him out of his daze. “It’s okay, come here.”

Rhodey shifted over to let Peter kneel beside him. Up close, Tony looked even worse; tired, pale, breathing heavily. Tears entered Peter’s eyes.

“I’m sorry Mr. Stark,” he murmured. “I didn’t...I…”

“Pete, stop.” Tony sat up, with the help of Rhodey. “Seriously, you’re making me nauseous..”

“But I…”

“It happens,” Tony said with a small smile. “It’s over.”

Peter shifted uncomfortably, twiddling his thumbs. He was just about to stammer more apologies when the door opened behind him. Spinning around, he found Nat leading a wide-eyed Happy into the room.

Peter jumped back to his feet.

“Happy, sir, I’m so…” Peter’s voice broke, but he didn’t care. He was guilty, guilty, guilty. All of his heroes would be disappointed...they’d never forgive him.

“Would you wait until I’m here before having a panic attack?” Happy said with a smirk, clapping Tony on the back.

“I need to keep you on your toes somehow,” Tony replied. “Can’t make it too easy for you.”

Happy turned up to Peter, with a gentle look in his eyes that Peter had never seen.

“Pete, come here.”

He obeyed, without a voice to respond. Happy usually called him ‘kid’ or ‘spider boy’, not his real name. And certainly not with that friendly of a tone.

“Happy, I messed up.” Great, he was crying again. “I…”

Happy’s hand landed on his shoulder. 

“Pete, you didn’t cause this.”

“I did! He was fine and then…”

“And then some assholes hurt him in a country millions of miles away,” Happy finished. “Years before he even met you.”

The room was silent as Happy’s words rang through the pool area. Only Cap’s footsteps echoed, as he carried the cup of water to Tony.

“Wish this had a bit less H2O and a bit more OH, Cap,” Tony said blearily, taking a sip anyway.

Peter chuckled, prompting a confused look from Happy.

“OH is the alcohol group,” Peter explained. “Chemistry.”

Tony held his glass up as if to toast.

“This is why I picked you, kid.”

Ten minutes later, the pool party was back to feeling like a party. Cap was busy at the barbeque making Happy a burger, while the others raced each other across the length of the pool. At the pool’s edge, Peter sat beside Tony, their legs dangling into the water and their eyes frozen into the blue.

“Stop blaming yourself,” Tony said suddenly.

“I’m not! I’m not,” Peter squeaked.

“Yes, you are. But don’t.”

Peter sighed, letting his shoulders shrug heavily.

“I guess I just got scared,” he said.

Tony shook his head.

“You never have to worry about me. I worry about you, okay?”

Peter bit his bottom lip. 

“Hey.” Tony took hold of his shoulders. “I worry about you. Got that?”

Peter nodded, if only to get his mentor’s eyes off of his own. He still only saw that deep rooted fear that he had caused. He still heard Tony’s terrified shouting…

“Yeah,” Peter breathed. “Got it.”

Tony clapped his shoulders with a smile.

“Good. Then let’s get back to the party. I’ve got a real cheesy joke for ya.”

Tony spun around to Happy, who was trying to eat in peace on one of the benches by the barbeque.

“Got yourself a Happy Meal there, Happy?” Tony called.

Happy glared.

The exchange made Peter chuckle, but the weight stayed stuck in his chest. 

“Mr. Stark? I think I’m gonna head home. May’s probably expecting me soon and…”

“Kid, come with me,” Tony said, wrapping an arm around Peter as he led him over to the pool room wall.

“You gotta help me out here, Pete. What can I do to make you okay?” 

Peter stood shocked for a second. He’d never heard Tony put so much care into his voice. 

Still, Peter could only shake his head.

“You don’t have to do anything, Mr. Stark. But can I...can I apologize?”

Tony rolled his eyes.

“You really don’t have to. But if it’ll make you feel better…”

Peter nodded, clearing his throat. Then he looked his mentor in the eye.

“I’m sorry.”

“And you’re forgiven,” Tony said, raising a hand like a priest absolving a sinner. He smirked and patted him on the shoulder again. “Come on kid, let’s get you home.”

Peter still didn’t feel totally alright, and he knew he wouldn’t for a long time. But he also knew that Mr. Stark seriously believed in him, and that the Avengers really did trust him. And for now, that would have to do.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! If you enjoyed anythint at all, please don't hesitate to comment; it means more than you know!


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